Simply Leave

With tank-like treads attached to your boots, you can whizz down a grassy slope much like skiers whizz down snowy mountains. This is grass skiing.

I’ll admit that I thought this was a little crazy at first. However, once the giddy newness of watching someone find a new way to zoom down a mountain wears off, I began to see honest potential in those plastic shoes. Grass skiing could be as cool as downhill skateboarding, or the undeniably ballsy street luge.

Some of the videos I found on youtube are actually quite a testament to the possibilities of this nascent sport. People can get going pretty fast and still actually turn.

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Creative Commons picture by kevinzim.

East of flagstaff, Arizona there is a giant hole in the ground that is totally worth a visit. It was created by either a meteor impact 50,000 years ago or a really big gopher. Whatever future studies conclude actually caused it, it is quite impressive.

If you are struggling get your mind around the idea that really big rocks sometimes crash into the earth at over 28,000 miles per hour, this is a good crater to visit. The dry climate of the region allows one to see the whole crater. Erosion hasn’t changed all that much since those heady days when giant ground sloths roamed the area. This crater also doesn’t have a forest to block your view of the destruction fast moving rocks can wreak.
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Tradition says that if you toss a coin in the Trevi fountain you will one day return to Rome. This tradition, coupled with an apparently widespread desire to return to Rome, has resulted in so many coins being tossed into the fountain that the city must regularly vacuum them out. As you might expect, the Trevi fountain also seems to be one of the cleanest and best cared for sights in Rome.

The Trevi fountain could be an excellent example of group financing for ancient monument preservation. Many of the great Roman monuments hark back to the beginning of western civilization. The right mix of cultural importance and a widespread superstition that your fortunes will improve if money is left may be able to preserve these monuments for another two thousand years.
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Reading about the crazy claims of some travel gadgets is usually fun. But, watching people test travel gadgets that make crazy claims is even more fun. Did you know one can get a bullet proof bag? There are also airtight, watertight, crush resistant, flashily secure, and theft resistant bags. Because, sometimes you want to see a case withstand being run over by a truck.

Here are four super-tough bags that one could take around the world.

Concealed Holster Attache or Laptop Case

I love the duality here. You could use it as a shield when under fire and to carry a weapon in secret…or you could carry your laptop.

This little beauty is said to be able to withstand sub-machine gun fire and provide the highest blunt trauma protection available with soft body armor. This is a class III-A protection shield and can perfectly fit your toothbrush, shaver, and a change of clothes.

A Pelican Case

These cases are focused on protecting things from threats like three story drops and submersion. Pelican says their cases are extremely sturdy, water proof, and even airtight. So sturdy in fact that they can handle being run over by a truck or submerged for two hours without any problem.

I just wonder…will it blend?

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The TSA, the government agency in charge of airport security, has setup a website that attempts to predict the length of airport security lines.

Creative Commons picture by twodolla.

The Power of Such Knowledge

Find the shortest security line

The TSA website estimates the wait time for each terminal and section of gates. Getting separate estimates for the security line at the A gates and the one at the B gates is more valuable than one might at first think.

In most airports the different gate sections are connected by walkways. Assisted by TSA’s estimate of wait time you can see if you would be better off going through the C gate security checkpoint and then walking around to the A Gates. This could give you an extra half hour to spend with a cinnabun rather than standing around in the security line.
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There is a place where people tie themselves to rockets, and then shoot themselves into space

Creative Commons picture by jurvetson.

This is incredibly gutsy. No matter how many times the math is carefully worked out on this one, only the most daring will actually attempt this. These are really really big rockets.

In fact, I am hard pressed to come up with a more gutsy action. Perhaps removing your own soon to explode appendix without anesthetic…but, that would usually fall into the “just crazy” category.

For those who would like to watch the launch of a humongous rocket that has people tied to it, the space shuttle discovery is scheduled to launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on February 12th.

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There is a sport where people climbs three stories with a one story ladder…in under 20 seconds. This is speed hook ladder climbing.

The technique of using a short ladder with a hook on the end to climb a tall building was once an important way for firefighters to avoid dangerously damaged staircases. A skilled firefighter could quickly hook the ladder on a window sill above him, climb up the ladder, then sit in that window while repeating the process. Theoretically this allowed a firefighter to get to any story of a burning building without much equipment.

As cool as this technique is, the function it provided firefighters has simply been replaced by other methods in North America. However, in eastern Europe speed hook ladder climbing has started to slide from “professional practice” to “sport.” If you are not yet convinced of the coolness of this sport, a 30 second video of a contestant climbing a building facade at amazing speeds will probably change your mind. I love seeing people do things that I thought were impossible, the outfits are pretty cool to.